News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1887-07-14
SABBATH SCHOOL.
INTERNATIONAL LESSON FOR
JULY II.
lesson Text: John the Baptist, -
Matt. iii, 1-12-Goldcn Text:
Matt. iii, S-Commeutary by
Rev. William Newton, DID.

V. l. The phrass.''in those days manifest
ly means the concluding portion of our Lords
residence In Nazareth, for Johns public min
istry commenced only a short time before
that of Jesus All we know of him from his
birth until our Lesson opens is contained in
Luke l., 81; iii, Is; Mark i;-2-5, and John
i, 1925. John was the herald or foreEunner
of Jesus. He was sent to announce His com
ing. Johns mission was not tUipt}icid1sGkS,
bat TO the nation Of Israel. Hsyvas the her
aid of the coming King.
V. = This of course is a very brief sIEIE-
mary of Johns preaching. As we vloalel say
1t contains two points, I. e.,
1. The duty enjoined. ''Repent We, ssAd!
2. The reason assigned. The kinIsSles4'',
etc.
As to the first, there is no more famlisns
word than this. There are few so little undte
stood What is repentarce: Sorrow for slaf.
No. True repentance produces sorrow fCst'
sin, but sorrow for sin Is not repentance,
IL Cor. vii, 10. 1t is fear of the penalty
No For that looks at the penalty alone and
t,ays no regard to the sin itself. How then
can that be repentance for sin: What then
IS repentance: 1t is change of mind to-
yards God always in view of what He is and
of what He has done for u.s. And the result
OF repentance is a changed life which John
exhorts the people to bring forth in view OF
their coming Messiah.
AS to the second. What kingdom was this.
In Marks account we have the significant
words of our Lord: "The time is fulfilled
The kingdom of, etc" Mark IL, IA. And
here is clearly q set time which ~ now fus-
filed. And in view of this comes tke'cal OF
His herald to prepare the way of tie coming
King But what time was this anti what
kingdom. Can we doubt that it was the
time spoken of by Daniel the prophet and
extending from the going forth OF the e7m-
mandments to restore and to rebuild JeSi'-
salem unto the Messiah the Prince?' tx, "a
He sent his messenger to herald His coming
and they put Him to death. As 1t was with
the herald, so it was to be with the Prince
l., 10 To off
them the kingdom and they adiudged Him to
the Cross Matt. xxi, 33-i3. But in view
of His coming, in view of the kingdom of
which He was the Head, the people were
called on to forsake their sins and prepare for
His coming among them. The nptioR was
summoned. III classes were hidden thus to
prepare. Luke iii, 10-1S.
V. s. This verse is the comment of the
Evangelist Matthew, and not part of the
words of John. 1t is taken from the Sep
tuagint translatiOnof Isaiah, XL, 5, t. And
we must remember it was not merely Il
spiritual impulse from the Divine Spirit
which moved the prophet as he wrote. 1t ICdS
that, but it was also much more than that.
1t was 'the riSiOH of Isaiah IChich he Sdic'
Is j. l. 1t was like the unfolding of size
ceSSion OF panoramic views before him. He
sur aud he heard that trhich he described.
He heard the voice of the herald of the COM
ing King as he told the nation of His coming
The custom of the times supplied the figure of
his speech. He called upon the nation to pre-
pare IDF Tile htSoltl = COLilllS. as promptly,
as earnestly, as jOyOuSly as the people of a
given province turned out to pre-
pare the road over which their king
was to pass. As in the one case, every
valley was to be fillcl up, every
hill to betaken away, and every hindrance
to be removed, so in the other. Everything
in thought, aud temper and disposition and
life that was opposed to the far-TeaChing de
mands of the coming King was to be put out
of the way. Every high thought that exalted
itself against God was to lie brought low.
Every crooked thing must he made straight.
and clear andopen way must be made ready
for His coming. This lcdS the claim of their
coming one, just as their own prophet had
foretod
VA. The comment of the Evangelist con-
tinueS. John was dressed in the true style of
the old prophets. He was Elijah over again.
The rough garment was his, and the wilder
ness life was his, and the fiery spirit was his,
and the strong and impetuous address was
his. And he himself would have been to them
the ELIAS which was for to come" If they
tCOuid. Matt. Xi: Il.
V ), g. In his long soiourn in the wilder
ness, along with God and His Word, John
came to be thoroughly imbued with its testi-
mony about the Messilh. But he would make
no movement by himself. He was content to
abide I'm the wilderness until he was sum-
moned out of it. And so the Spirit founi
him there. The Holy Ghost came upon him.
Its inspiration stirred within him. And in
the power of that inspiration he went forth to
his great work. His preaching reused the
nation like trumpets blast The people
were reused as from a death-lke sumber.
They fOcked to hear this strange preacher.
Everything about him seemed to arrest the +
attention. The suddenness of his appearance,
the bodness and vehemence of his address,
his Ehjah-like and fiery ZEAL and above ali
the startling truth which h. sent to pro
claim all reused the nation to a pitch of
high-wrought excitement, fairly evidenced
by the crowds that fOcked to his min
istry. No Jew could be Indifferent
to the announcement that ''NesSiah,
the Prince, was at hand. And therefore we
cannot wonder that Z" all Jerusalem, and all
Judea, and all the region, etc, ;" went out to
hear him For neighbor would tell to
neighbor, and friend to friend, until the
whole country echoed with the sound of his
preaching. And it was not idle curiosity. 1t
bore at least some fruit meet for repentance
For they confessed their sins and received
1.-THE baptism of repentance But this must
not be confounded with Christian baptism.
For that had no existence then. 1t was not
established for three years after this time
Matt. xviii, 10: Mark xvi, 16. There was
nothing in common between the two, and
therefore Johns Baptism would not admit to
membership in the Christian Church. 1t icdS
national rite Altogether, and had no refer
ence to Christs death ON the Cross for sins of
men. Acts xix, IL
V. rs. In Matt. xiii, 1-}6, we have
divinely drawn portraiture of Scribes and
PhariSees. 1t is a terrible deineatiOn of
character by One to whose vision ALI things
are naked and OPEN And the Sadducees
stood with them side bY side, only going be-
yOnd them in this, i. e., denying the exist
ence of angel or spirit, and possibility of the
resurrection. Acts xiii, .. According to
them men are eXtin Enished like the brutes at
death. Why should then come to his baptism.
What had they to do with the Kingdom of
the coming One. There was no point of con-
tact between Il and them. Only as they gave
proof of a thorough change, only as they
brought forth fruit meet for repentance,
could they be allowed to come
Y. g. And they were not to boast them
selves as Ensal descendants of Abraham. For
Abraham's children would do the works of
Abraham. And if all others failed God was
able from the stones beneath their feet to
raise up children to the father of the faith
full. They nee1 not presume to plume them
selves on their lineal descent.
V. 10. There is something wonderfully
impressive in this figure. The are at the
root of the trees Laid there The owner of
the vineyard had been there with the pur-
pose of Judgment in His mind, looking at the
trees. He was dissatisfied with them and so
laid the axe at their roots. Now, OHty as
they brought forth good fruit could then
escape its destructive edge
V. II. How clear is this discrimination? He
could baptiZe with water, but that could work
no inward change. So far as it was concerned
the PhariSee would be a Pharisee still, and
the Sadducee continue what he was. But
there was One mighter than he to whom he
was unworthy of performing the lOwliest of
nee, ana lie cOultl bdptlZe with the Holy
Ghost, changing their spirits with the touch
of a new life. Was that all! No. His also
was the baptism of fire when He should take
up the axe He had laid at the root of the
trees and judgment should do its appointed
work Now, although i'll point of fact, he
did baptZe with the Holy Ghost on the day
of PentecO5t, yet that was not in fulfill
ment of this prophecy of John For we
must never forget that Johns ministry 'cas TO
the nation and not to the Church. While
the baptism of the day of Pentecost ICnS Of
the Church and not of the nation. These
words of John therefore are yet unfulfilled
They 90 fOFtCdrd to the future when at the
coming of the Lord, the Spirit of grace and
supplication shall be poured upon the house
of David and upon the Inhabitants of Jeru-
salem, /. e., upon the nation Of Judah who
now reject their Messiah, and on whom the
baptism of fire was to come down at the de
structiOn Of Jerusalem, and the removal OF
the nation from its place.
V. Il. The figure changes here. 1t is that
of the husbandman and the threshing II )or
And again His Office is twofold. 1t is that Of
baptizing with the Holy Ghost, and with fir,
on the one hand, cutting down tine evil tree
and sparing the good on he other; and agar
it is cleansing the threshing floor Or gathering
the wheat into His garner and burning up tn
chaff with unqueuchable fire. IL IS tUOfOLc
in each case 1t comes in fiery Judgment Of
the one side, and in boundleSs blessings on TIN
other. And they are called to prepare Jo'
HIS coming.
GENERAL LESSONS.
l. The Prophets account of John. 'Ih